Instagram Live streaming is now available for Stories

Instagram live streaming lets the user share their stories with everyone

Three weeks after announcing the new feature, Instagram made the live streaming feature for Stories available to all U.S users.

Subscribers can activate it by swiping to “Live” mode under the “Stories” section. From there, followers can post comments in real-time as well as send floating hearts to the broadcaster.

With this innovation, Instagram joins the rank of live streaming applications like Facebook or Periscope.

Trying to be different from the competition

The main difference with broadcasting on Instagram is that the videos cannot be archived. This means that users will have to keep an eye on their phone if they don’t want to miss the latest shenanigans of their friends. This might seem like an odd way to operate but Instagram’s 500 million subscribers should be a good testing ground to see if this is a viable option in the long term.

The company also mentioned that they would have a new “Top Live” section that will allow anyone to access the most popular videos happening at any moment.

Disappearing photos, comment control and other features coming as well

When the company announced in November that the live streaming was coming, they also presented the “Disappearing Photos” feature. Similar to Snapchat, it allows the user to send self-destructing pictures and videos to his friends.

Instagram is set to release some other tweaks in the coming weeks. Users will be able to turn the comment section off for any of their posts. It will also be easier to remove followers from their private account. Finally, an anonymous reporting system will be created for those who think that one of their followers might need moral support or professional help. Instagram will then provide them with local resources.

Users will be able to update their application as the new version rolls out in the coming days.